Phil Collins Delays Reissue Campaign Due to Emergency Surgery

Phil Collins fans will have to wait a little longer to hear remastered and expanded versions of his solo LPs.

According to a press release from Collins’ label, the "Take a Look at Me Now" reissue campaign, originally scheduled to begin Nov. 6 with new editions of his Face Value and Both Sides albums, has been postponed until Jan. 29, 2016 in order to give Collins time to recover from emergency back surgery and free him up for the "extensive promotion campaign and other creative obligations" he’s planned.

"I am so disappointed to have to delay the release," Collins is quoted as saying in the press release, "but am looking forward to being able to properly get behind this release in the new year when I can move again!"

Collins has battled back pain for years, and currently copes with extensive nerve damage that has left him unable to grip drumsticks or sit behind a kit for any extended period of time. Although rumors have flown in recent years regarding a possible comeback tour, Collins quashed them in late 2014, explaining that he was still "not ready" to return to live performance.

As previously reported, the "Take a Look at Me Now" campaign offers fans an opportunity to compare and contrast Collins’ album tracks with live versions and demos of the original songs. "I’ve always been quite proud of my demos and have often made them available as B-sides, but with a few exceptions, I have avoided including those on these collections," he said when the project was announced. "Instead, I’ve focused on how nicely the songs developed when played on stage, rather than showing how they originated."